South Side Ald. Leslie Hairston announces she will retire at end of term

CHICAGO (CBS) — Ald. Leslie Hairston (5th) announced Friday that she will be retiring at the end of her current term next year, after 24 years in office.

“For more than 30 years, I have held jobs serving the public and it is time for me to look at the next chapter of my life,” Hairston said in a statement issued late Friday. “While I haven’t made any decisions yet, rest assured it will be active, engaged and committed to making my community better. It just will not be as alderperson.”

Hairston’s South Side ward includes much of the Hyde Park neighborhood – including the University of Chicago campus – as well as Jackson Park and parts of Woodlawn, South Shore, and Grand Crossing.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot issued a tweet Friday night thanking Hairston for her decades of service.

Hairston was first elected to the 5th Ward seat in 1999, following a crowded race that ended in a contentious runoff with one-term incumbent Ald. Barbara Holt.

In 2019, Hairston narrowly won reelection against activist William Calloway, who had pressed authorities to release the Laquan McDonald video showing the teen being shot 16 times by Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke.

Hairston listed numerous achievements and improvements the ward has seen in her time in office, including an assortment of new businesses, the opening of the Stony Island Arts Bank, the renovation of the Shoreland Hotel – which was converted from a U of C dorm to apartments – and the development of the Obama Presidential Library in Jackson Park.

At least five other aldermen have said they’re not running for re-election in 2023. Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th) and Ald. Roderick Sawyer (6th) both plan to run for mayor instead. Ald. Harry Osterman (48th) and Ald. James Cappleman (46th) both announced this month they plan to retire at the end of their terms. Ald. Carrie Austin (34th) announced last year she would not run for re-election after she was indicted on bribery charges.